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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22539652">Head Up in the Sunlight, Baby</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fabro/pseuds/Fabro-de-omres'>Fabro-de-omres (Fabro)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Stormlight Archive - Brandon Sanderson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff, YouTube, Youtuber AU, adolin is a gamer, and shallan is an animation channel, injury (off-screen and not dangerous), kaladin is a rock, minimum angst, this is really just self-indulgent</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 13:55:54</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,217</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22539652</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fabro/pseuds/Fabro-de-omres</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Adolin is an up-and-coming gamer by the name of Kholination. Shallan does animation videos on her channel VeilDraws. By all accounts, their paths should never cross. Aka YouTuber AU, ft. Kaladin as the disgruntled best friend.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kaladin &amp; Adolin Kholin, Shallan Davar &amp; Kaladin, Shallan Davar/Adolin Kholin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>60</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Head Up in the Sunlight, Baby</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Adolin started his channel, he never expected it to go anywhere. He'd done it out of boredom- some curiosity too, wanting something simple to do without much pressure. It was a way for him to relax and have fun- and hey, if someone else found him funny too, then great!</p><p>Now, after streaming for a half-year and with a modest amount of subscribers under his belt, Adolin can safely say that streaming is something that he loves. There's something about the anonymousness that comes with the internet. He can be as loud or silly as he wants because there are no other expectations of him. It's fantastic.</p><p>So tonight he's back at his computer, holed up in his bedroom at nine o'clock at night and beating the crap out of digital mobs. The question catches him off guard. It's Renarin who asks him, though it's not his fault since it's what Adolin asked him to do. "Huh?" he asks distractedly, pummeling one of the giant crab-monsters into the ground. The screen lights up as it's health drops and he leans back in his chair with a self-satisfied sigh. "There! Got it. What were you saying?"</p><p>Renarin is scrolling through the chat, pulling out comments that look interesting to him.</p><p>He clears his throat. "Booksarebetterthanpeople asked you if you had any studying habits or tips?"</p><p>Ah. Adolin bites his lip, staring at the screen. His little blue character runs forward and gathers the loot from the downed monster. "Uh," he says, rubbing the back of his neck, "I'm a college student with ADHD who plays video games for the internet. I'm not sure I'm the best person to ask for that." He laughs a bit self-consciously. "Personally, though, I like to put on videos in the background. They make good white noise."</p><p>And then, because he's never been that good at multi-tasking, his dumb mouth keeps rambling even as he turns his attention back to the game. "There's this one channel I've been watching a lot lately- she's a smaller animation channel that my cousin recommended me. She's got a really cute laugh." Then his traitorous brain catches up to his tongue and he flushes so hard he's sure the monitor has to pick up on it. "Ah. On second thought, maybe that's <em>not</em> the most helpful tip if you're trying to avoid distraction." He grins at the camera. "Know what, though, I'll put her link in the description down below. She's definitely worth checking out."</p><p>He plays for about a half-hour longer before the clock on his monitor and the ache in his stomach tells him it's time to go. He continues until there's a satisfying ending place and sets down the controller, leaning back in his chair again. "Well, that's it for today! Thanks for joining us, everyone!"</p><p>They say their goodbyes, Adolin dragging Renarin into the screen for a split second, and log off.</p><p>"You don't usually listen to Jasnah," Renarin says, once they've closed down the stream.</p><p>Adolin stretches his arms above his head as he chases the conversation thread back. "I do," he defends. "About the important things, at least, like how to avoid the cops."</p><p>"I see," Renarin says slowly. He stares at Adolin for a long second, the one that people who don't know him very well are often unsettled by. "Well. Goodnight, then." He nods his head once and slips out the door.</p><p>"Wait!" Adolin shouts, chasing him out into the hallway. "What the heck is that supposed to mean?"</p>
<hr/><p>Shallan wakes up to fifteen notifications from her YouTube account. She stares at the little circle in the app's corner for longer than is strictly necessary- or socially acceptable- half convinced that it's her sleep-deprived brain playing tricks on her. But no- when she rubs her eyes and coughs up a tonsil stone the alerts are still there. Curious, and a bit concerned, she clicks open the app.</p><p>Fortunately, it doesn't appear that she's been copyrighted or offended some big YouTuber… again. Most of the alerts actually seem to come from her most recent video, which is strange seeing as how it's nearly a month old. When she loads it, there are seven new comments waiting.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>EdgeDancer01</strong>
</p><p>Woah! I love your animation style!</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Honor is Dead</strong>
</p><p>this actually isn't half bad. keep up the good work.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>AWESOME</strong>
</p><p>(⌒▽⌒)</p><p> </p><p>She scrolls through them, confused. It's not that they aren't nice- they all are, actually, but where did they come from?</p><p>It's the last comment that gives her a clue.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>The Void</strong>
</p><p>Adolin was right. Her laugh is nice.</p><p> </p><p>Shallan flushes, because excuse me? She clicks out of her video, sees that her subscriber count has grown, and opens up the search bar. Adolin. That had to be someone's name. She waits for her crappy internet connection to load and clicks on the first result that appears.</p><p>The video starts as black. Something shifts in the background and then a face comes into focus.</p><p>"Hello everyone, thanks for checking in again! I'm Adolin, your dazzlingly beautiful host for this evening. Or morning, I guess, if you live… somewhere that's not here." He grins. "Welcome to the Kholination!"</p><p>He has the audacity to wink at the camera. The opening is so ridiculous that Shallan snorts out loud and misses whatever he says next.</p><p>The kid is young- well actually, he looks to be a little older than Shallan but Shallan has a bad tendency to call anyone vaguely her age a kid. Shallan raises her eyebrow at his dye job- a strange mix of black and blonde streaks through his hair that he clearly cuts himself.</p><p>More awake now, she props herself up on her pillow and scrubs through the hour-and-a-half-long stream. It's around the middle that she finally finds it- someone asks the kid off-camera if he had any studying tips and he's suddenly talking about an animation channel that has to be hers. His face is flushing. <em>Cute</em>, Shallan thinks, conveniently ignoring her own red cheeks. <em>And what the heck does he mean about my laugh?</em></p><p>He mentions that her information is down below. Shallan opens the description box and sure enough- there's her channel link. Shallan gets a feeling in her chest that she ought to thank him, but she doesn't know how. She's an animation channel- besides her videos taking weeks of work to prepare for a minute-long clip, she's never shown herself or her face.</p><p>She checks the time on her phone, and groaning, forces herself to get out of bed. She has a meeting with a friend later, and they almost never see each other so she can't afford to be late. YouTube boy and his drama will have to wait.</p><p>Except her mind can't seem to let it go, even an hour and a half later when she's sitting down at a table in a coffee shop. "Here," Kaladin says, taking the seat across from her. Shallan makes grabby hands for the cup of coffee he brings with him, and rolling his eyes, he pushes it across the table to her. She makes a happy noise.</p><p>"You're so weird," he says.</p><p>"You're one to talk," Shallan says back. "Nice boots, by the way."</p><p>"Are we gonna keep bringing this up?"</p><p>Shallan laughs. "You're too easy to tease," she teases. "Really, it would be a shame to let all that potential go to waste."</p><p>"You sound like a Disney villain," he says.</p><p>"I'm surprised you even know what Disney is."</p><p>This is how almost all of their conversations usually go- quick, light banter to fill in the silence as they gear up for what they really want to say. Shallan is the one to break first.</p><p>"So you know how I do YouTube videos in my spare time?" she asks. She plows ahead, not waiting for his answer. "The weirdest thing happened this morning. Some gamer kid recommended my channel in his video and now I have like, twenty new subscribers."</p><p>"That's a good thing, right?" Kal asks. He takes a long, slow sip of his coffee. "Once again, I feel the need to remind you that I know next to nothing about kids or their strange internet habits."</p><p>Shallan rolls her eyes. "Just because you have the social media presence of a rock doesn't mean you can't help. He did a nice thing for me, and he said that my laugh was- that he liked how I sounded. I don't want to ignore him! What should I say back?"</p><p>"You're asking me for politeness lessons?" Kaladin asks, disbelieving. "Shallan, what part of this has escaped your notice: that when we first met I nearly threw hands with you over a table, or that my Facebook profile has one picture on it and it's my dog?"</p><p><em>He has a point there</em>, Shallan is forced to admit. The two of them had met during high school, when Shallan was still quiet and shy and preferred to stick to the shadows. The only reason they'd even met was because both of them were looking for the most secluded place in the library. Shallan's not actually sure if she's ever seen a picture of him, digital or otherwise.</p><p>"You're right," Shallan says. "It's not even a good picture of her, either." She sighs dramatically into her coffee. "Poor Syl. Stuck with the embodiment of a sour gummy worm for an owner."</p><p>"Say that to my face," Kaladin says. Not that Shallan can- he's laid his head down on his arms across the table. Looking at him like this, Shallan's acutely aware of the stress and exhaustion he carries on his shoulders.</p><p>Kaladin had been on track to go to medical school, but a sudden bankruptcy sent his family spiraling into debt. Kaladin had dropped his studies and schooling immediately and had gone to work. Between the three odd jobs he worked and providing for his younger brother, he had barely any time to do anything for himself. Shallan felt embarrassed, now, for taking up so much of their precious time by blathering about herself.</p><p>"How's Tien doing?" she asks instead.</p><p>Kaladin lifts his head. There's always one thing that can get him talking- his eyes light up and he holds himself straighter. "He's doing good," he says. "Did I tell you he won an award last week?"</p><p>Shallan pockets her phone. She can stress about Kholination later, on her own time, but right now is for her in-the-flesh friend. "I don't think you did," she says. "You gonna tell me now?"</p><p>They spend the rest of their lunch date talking about Tien and the books they're reading, and eventually Kaladin looks at his watch and says- regretfully- that he has to get going. They say their goodbyes and promise to get together again soon. Shallan waves him off and throws out her coffee cup. She checks her phone- she still has an hour before her afternoon class.</p><p>She observes the phone in her hand. Her YouTube is still open to Kholination's video- besides her link, he also has his Instagram handle in the description.</p><p>Now as much as she likes to pretend that she's a calm and put-together person, the truth is that Shallan is impulsive. She reacts in the moment, her mouth moving before she can stop herself, and has a bad tendency to deflect anything and everything with a joke and finger guns.</p><p>His Insta is right there. What's she supposed to do, ignore it?</p><p>The profile that loads is an odd mix of aesthetic photos- mostly blue and gold- and dorky ones of Kholination and his friends. His profile picture is him making a weird face at the camera- eyes wide and mouth open in an outraged grin. The photo looks like it was taken by someone else and without his knowing. Despite herself, Shallan laughs.</p><p>She opens up a private chat, fingers hovering over the keyboard. <em>Hey</em>, she types, <em>this is Veil</em>. <em>I just wanted to say thanks for the shoutout. It was nice of you.</em> She hesitates for a split second before hurriedly typing: <em>Also your laugh is nice too.</em></p><p>She hits send before she can talk herself out of it.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>And then I missed my morning class because my bird pulled my phone charger from the wall and my alarm never went off.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>Ouch. Bad Pattern!</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>I told him that and he just hummed aggressively at me. I'm now afraid for my life.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>I'm live in fear that someone will murder my friend VeilDraws who lives at 22 YT st, apt 2 on the 1st floor, has a homicidal bird, keeps doors unlocked can't miss it</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>I'm*</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>IM TRYING TO SAVE YOUR LIFE AND THATS WHAT YOU CHOOSE TO CALL ME OUT ON? the nerve</p><p> </p><p>"Adolin. Adolin."</p><p>Adolin's head snaps up guiltily. "Yeah, Dad?"</p><p>Dalinar Kholin looks less than impressed. "Your phone?" he asks, holding out his hand.</p><p>Sheepishly, Adolin stuffs his phone back in his pocket. "I wasn't!" he defends.</p><p>Kaladin snorts into his cereal. "Sure thing you weren't. No one stares at their crotch that long, smiling like a creeper."</p><p>Adolin flushes. His dad raises one eyebrow at him but goes back to eating. Adolin pushes his soggy cereal around with his spoon until his dad leaves for work. "Thanks, <em>bro</em>," he says, emphasizing the bro part as they rinse their dishes and stick them in the dishwasher.</p><p>"No problem," Kaladin says. He doesn't grin as he says it, meaning Adolin can't even get joy out of harassing him.</p><p>"I thought we had something," he continues anyway, throwing the towel over a chair and leaning back dramatically over it. "You used my comb. I thought I could trust you."</p><p>"Sorry to this man," Kaladin intones, a lifetime of friendship meaning that he can repeat on command every meme Adolin forces upon him.</p><p>They move from the kitchen to the living room, walking down the hallway lined with photos. Renarin and Adolin's faces smile at them from most, with an occasional friend or other family member thrown into the mix. Most of the pictures are years old, taken before Adolin's mom died, their colors slowly fading from the light. Adolin's eye catches on one of Ren and Tien, both of them grinning at the camera. In the background, Kaladin and himself are glowering daggers at the other. He huffs a laugh.</p><p>"Something funny?" Kaladin asks. He sits down on the couch facing the tv.</p><p>"Nah," Adolin says, a smile tugging at his lips. "Just remembering how much of a jerk you were back in the day."</p><p>"You weren't much better, dimwit."</p><p>Adolin rolled his eyes. He turns on the tv but doesn't queue up a game straight away. Kaladin nestles down on the couch and draws a blanket over his lap. There are dark bags under his eyes. Night shift, Adolin thinks, turning the volume down. His phone pings in his pocket and he checks it, grinning when he sees that Veil replied.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>Sorry, g2g.  Dad says to get off my phone</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>what are you, twelve</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>What does this mean???</p><p>Veil???</p><p>And on a scale of one to ten, yes</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>Adolin laughs out loud. He looks up to see Kaladin watching him with a bored face. Nothing about his expression invites Adolin to share, but Adolin's always been good at ignoring social cues.</p><p>"So there's this girl," he starts.</p><p>Without losing eye-contact, Kaladin slowly drags the blanket up and over his head. "I'm gonna stop you right there," blanket Kaladin says. "Because I've heard this same speech a hundred times."</p><p>"No, this time it's different," Adolin says, trying to keep the whine from his voice. From the deadpan look he receives from the surprisingly expressive blanket Kaladin, he wasn't so successful. "I've been talking to her for the last month, okay? I've never met her, but she sounds so pretty- don't laugh at me! Her voice is deep and she has a really great cadence when she talks and her laugh is just-"</p><p>"So you're telling me that you fell in love with a voice," Kaladin says, when it becomes clear that Adolin isn't going to say anything else and dig himself into an even deeper hole than he already has. "A voice," he repeats, and snorts. "Only you, Adolin."</p><p>"Hey," Adolin defends. "It's a really nice voice. We've been chatting on Instagram and she seems really nice too."</p><p>"I'm too tired to deal with this mess," Kaladin says. The blanket mass shifts so it's lying down sideways. "I'm going to sleep on your couch now for the foreseeable future and nobody better not wake me unless the house is on fire."</p><p>"Thanks for the moral support," Adolin says dryly.</p><p>Kaladin flips him off.</p><p>Adolin sighs and starts up the game.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Kholination</strong>
</p><p>I have the most unhelpful friend in the universe</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>VeilDraws</strong>
</p><p>Oh worm? </p>
<hr/><p>The hospital waiting room is cold and sterile.</p><p>Shallan draws her knees together as Kaladin passes in front of her, muttered panickings falling from his lips. He reaches the end of the room and pivots, striding back the way he came.</p><p>"It's been ten minutes," he says. "Why haven't they let me back yet?"</p><p>He's due to wear a hole in the floor from all his pacing. It's been ten minutes since they'd arrived. Fifteen since Shallan had stumbled onto the metro to find him. Twenty since his message came through, late at night: Tien's in the hospital. Come quick.</p><p>It's been a half-hour since Kaladin received a text from his father, saying that Tien had been in a car accident with no follow-up messages, no matter how many times he called.</p><p>Kaladin passes in front of her again. Standing, Shallan seizes hold of his arm and tugs him into a chair. "You need to calm down," she tells him. "Would you want Tien seeing you like this?"</p><p>"Tien isn't here," he retorts.</p><p>"The point still stands. You've got to calm down," she repeats. "It can't be that bad, otherwise they would have told you when you got here, right? He's going to be fine."</p><p>"I'll be the judge of that if they'd actually let me see him," Kaladin grits. "What's taking them so long?"</p><p>"Kaladin!" A boy bursts through the waiting room door. "I just got your message! Where's Tien? Is he okay?" Except that Shallan hears none of that because her eyes have zeroed in on his yellow-and-black hair and she's pretty sure her brain's just short-circuited.</p><p>"He's in the back," Kaladin despairs. "They haven't let me back to see him."</p><p>The boy- <em>Adolin-</em> sits down in the chair beside Kaladin. He's two spaces away from Shallan. Shallan is <em>coping</em>. She resists the urge to run her hand through her hair, to check her reflection- she never cares about this stuff so why is she now? Adolin meets her gaze across the way. Shallan is sure she must look like a hot mess but he smiles and elbows Kaladin in the ribs.</p><p>"Kaladin!" he says. "You scoundrel. You haven't introduced me to your friend."</p><p>Kaladin rounds on him with a snarl, "My brother might be dying!" he snaps. "Can't you get your head out of yourself for a second, Adolin?"</p><p>Shallan flinches back. Kaladin she knows; despite having talked with Adolin for months now, he's still essentially a stranger. She's not prepared for this, and she doesn't know what she'd do if they broke out into a fight right now. She expects Adolin to snap back, but the other man backs up and holds up his hands.</p><p>"Sorry, I'm sorry. That was uncalled for."</p><p>Kaladin holds his glower a moment longer, until the doors open and a nurse calls softly for him. All the fight drains from his shoulders as he practically launches himself across the room. He disappears into the hallway, already asking a thousand questions, leaving Shallan and Adolin alone. Together.</p><p>Shallan feels uncharacteristically shy. Perhaps it's because of the situation. Perhaps it's because she's just met her maybe-crush. Whatever the reason, she doesn't like it.</p><p>She's just about to speak when Adolin sighs. "I wasn't trying to make him angry," the boy says, "I swear. I just wanted to distract him. Not being able to act drives him insane."</p><p>"I know," she says, and she does. "He's always been like that." She steels her nerves and finally looks into his face. "So how do you know Kaladin?"</p><p>Adolin shrugs. From this angle, she can just make out the slope of his nose and the bottom of his face from under his bangs. "I dunno. He just always seemed to be around when I was growing up- Tien and my kid brother were best friends- they still are." He snorts, a grin crossing his features. "It was either learn to get along or tear each other's throats out, but we reached an agreement sometime in the middle."</p><p>Shallan nods, filing this information away for when she inevitably screams at Kaladin for his general unhelpfulness. "That sounds familiar. We met for the first time at the library and fought over a table in the corner. Then I stole his shoes."</p><p>Adolin makes a choked-off noise in the back of his throat. "You stole his shoes?"</p><p>"Not on purpose," Shallan corrects. "I put on the wrong pair and didn't realize until I was home. It's not my fault he has such small feet." She laughs despite herself. When she glances up again, Adolin is watching her with a furrow in his brow. He smiled again when he sees her looking.</p><p>"Sorry," he says. "I'm not normally this weird-" a series of videos on YouTube testified differently- "but I swear I've met you before. What's your name again?"</p><p>"Shallan," Shallan says. Adolin frowns. "And-" Here goes nothing. "You're right. We actually have talked before, kinda. I'm-"</p><p>"VeilDraws." Adolin's eyes widen. A second later, his face lights up like a Christmas tree. "Holy cow! I knew I recognized you from something! Your voice!"</p><p>His excitement is infectious. Shallan finds herself grinning back. "It's nice to meet you officially," she says, sticking out her hand.</p><p>Adolin takes it. He searches her eyes as they shake. "Likewise," he says, sincere. "Wait. How'd you know it was me?"</p><p>Shallan gestures to his hair, a smile still tugging at her lips. "You have a pretty distinctive hairstyle. Plus, your face is in all your videos."</p><p>Adolin colors. "Oh. Right."</p><p>He clearly doesn't know what to say next, and his flustered expression makes Shallan laugh. Her hand goes up to cover her mouth, but Adolin's fingers catch around her wrist. "No, don't," he says, holding her gently, the tips of his ears red. "I like it."</p><p>Now Shallan flushes. "Shut up," she says, batting his hand away.</p><p>"Never," Adolin says, laughing. "Man. I can't believe that Kaladin was keeping you from me this entire time."</p><p>Shallan huffs. "Trust me, neither can I. I'm going to have a word with him when he gets back."</p><p>Both of them glance to the doors, remembering just why they're here. Shallan stills. "Do you think he'll be okay?" she asks quietly.</p><p>"Tien?" Adolin says. "Yeah. That kid's tougher than he looks. He's going to be fine." And the difference between the way he says it and the way she did earlier is striking.<em> He believes what he's saying</em>, she realizes. Something about his unwavering confidence makes her chest squeeze.</p><p>"So," she says, once silence stretches between them.</p><p>"So," he echoes.</p><p>Shallan is never one to beat around the bush. Her mouth moves too quickly for that, taking the words from her head before they they can filter through her processors. "Where do we go from here?" she asks.</p><p>"I like you," Adolin says quickly- too quickly, if his embarrassed look is anything to go by. But his obvious eagerness only heightens the excitement burning through her.</p><p>"Yeah," she says, butterflies adding a breathless quality to her voice. "I do too."</p><p>Adolin shrugs. "This doesn't have to be complicated, then." A grin springs to his face, and he drops down onto the ground beside her. "Shallan… you know, you never told me your last name."</p><p>"Davar," Shallan says, hiding her face in her hands, mortified. She glances around the room; they're the only ones there but the fact does nothing to diminish the blush on her cheeks. "Adolin, what the heck are you-"</p><p>"Shallan Davar," Adolin says with a flourish, "will you go out on a date with me? I can offer all sorts: movie dates, lunch dates, shopping dates, dates where we just cuddle on the couch and watch bad teen drama movies-"</p><p>Shallan makes a noise in the back of her throat. "Yes!" she exclaims, slapping at his hands. "Yes, just get up off the floor already!"</p><p>Adolin climbs back into his chair, bearing the biggest self-satisfied smile.</p><p>It's at that moment that the waiting room door opens. Shallan only sees the tips of Kaladin's tousled hair before she's launched herself from her seat and is crossing the room towards him. She takes one arm; Adolin takes the other. Together, they drag him over to the chairs.</p><p>"So?" Adolin demands. "Is he okay? What's the verdict?"</p><p>Kaladin doesn't answer for a second. His face is blank and his eyes are staring at nothing when he finally speaks. "He's gonna be okay."</p><p>It takes a moment to reconcile his downcast tone with his words. When it finally clicks, Shallan could cry from relief. Adolin punches Kal's arm.</p><p>"Hey!" Kaladin exclaims, looking put out. "What was that for?"</p><p>"That was for scaring us half to death!" Adolin shouts. His eyes are suspiciously shiny as he pulls Kaladin into a hug. "You drama queen. I could have told you that!"</p><p>"I said it perfectly fine," Kaladin says, but there's something to the relieved slump of his shoulders that softens his words. He drops into a chair, leaning forward with his elbows on his thighs. "He was out driving with his friends and some old man ran a red light and t-boned their car. He got lucky- it wasn't on his side. His arm's broken- that's what they're working on back there- but he's gonna be alright. He's gonna be alright."</p><p>"Thank god," Shallan breathes. "Is he awake now?"</p><p>"Are you pressing charges?" Adolin demands.</p><p>"It's up to Tien," Kal says. He snorts softly. "Knowing him, he's gonna forgive that bastard and let him off the hook."</p><p>Shallan sighs. Kaladin has always been more vindictive than his younger brother. Adolin, too, looks disappointed. "Do you know where he lives, at least?" he asks. "We could TP his house."</p><p>"What are you, twelve?" Shallan mutters.</p><p>Adolin brightens. "Well, actually-"</p><p>"Don't," she says, cutting him off with her fingers on his lips. He waggles his eyebrows at her. She groans. "You're disgusting."</p><p>Kaladin looks between the two of them, absolutely lost. Shallan wishes she had a video camera. "Wait a minute," he says slowly. "Did something happen with you two?"</p><p>Adolin licks her fingers. Shallan flushes, jerking her hand back. "Kaladin, you absolute donut hole," she says, wiping her fingers on her pants, "you are the most unhelpful man on this earth."</p><p>Kaladin blinks up at her. "What the heck is she on about?" he asks Adolin, probably looking for manly solidarity or something.</p><p>No such luck. Adolin grins unabashedly back and slings an arm around Shallan's waist. Shallan eeps. "Nope, my lady's absolutely right. You're something of a dunce, Kal."</p><p>"My lady?" Shallan unwraps herself from his hand. "Oh no. Do not even go there. What is this, the fourteen-hundreds?"</p><p>"Do you prefer something else, then?" Adolin lowers his eyes. "Honey? Sweetheart?" His eyes light up. "Babe?"</p><p>Shallan slaps him across the arm, a vain attempt to draw attention away from her reddening cheeks. She's sure they've got to be the color of her hair by now, and Adolin's laughter only confirms it. "Hush, you."</p><p>Through this entire exchange, Kaladin's eyes have been pin-balling back and forth from Shallan to Adolin. He's got the dumbest expression on his face, one of confusion and disbelief. Shallan snorts helplessly.</p><p>"It's been him the whole time, you idiot boy!" she exclaims.</p><p>Kaladin still looks lost. "It's been who the whole time?"</p><p>Shallan wants to hit him. Maybe that would knock some thought into his head. "Adolin! You know, the YouTuber I've been hopelessly crushing on for the past half-year?"</p><p>Adolin perks up. "You have a crush on me?"</p><p>Shallan eyes him, unimpressed. "We just confessed our undying love for each other literal minutes ago. Keep up, bumblebee hair."</p><p>"Oh!" Kaladin sits bolt-upright in his chair. His eyes fly from her face to Adolin's. "Oh! Oh! Wait a minute, cute laugh girl is <em>you</em>?"</p><p>"You don't have to look so surprised by it," Shallan sniffs.</p><p>Kaladin's eyes shift to Adolin. "And gamer kid is you?" he demands. "Do you mean to tell me that I've been forced to listen to both of my best friends pining for months on end… for each other?"</p><p>"Yep," Shallan says, popping the 'p'. "And it's all your fault too, for never showing up in any of our photos. You've got a lot of talking to do, buddy." She pauses. "And I don't care what you say, we <em>are</em> <em>making</em> <em>you</em> an Instagram account."</p>
<hr/><p>
  <em>Epilogue:</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The video starts as black. There's the sound of indistinct voices in the background, and something shifting, and then a man with blond-and-black-hair slides onto the camera.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Hey everyone, thanks for checking in again! Welcome to the Kholination! If you are new to this channel, you might not know this but we're going to be doing things a little bit differently today."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Someone new slides into the screen- a girl with red hair and pale blue eyes. "What's up, world."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The two-toned-hair man snorts into his drink. "What's up, world? That's the best you can come up with?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Says the kid with bumblebee hair." The girl flashes a grin at the camera. "Hey, everyone. My name's Shallan." Her eyes flick to the side of the screen; she laughs at something she reads there. "Yeah, I am the Shallan from the VeilDraws face reveal video. Thanks for your support!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>They settle down into chairs side-by-side. "So today," the man begins, "we're doing things a bit differently. Instead of my witty quips and handsome face to keep you company for this video, it's gonna be my girlfriend playing." He plants a peck on her cheek. "I, for one, am very interested to see how this goes."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The girl returns the kiss. For a moment, their eyes lock and something tender passes between them. Then the girl breaks out in a grin. "Oh, you are, are you? Just for that I'm gonna wipe the floor with you."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I'd like to see you try."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The girl laughs. "One last thing before we jump in. If you want to see this doof's art skills, make sure to check out the new VeilDraws video going up right now. I promise you won't be disappointed."</em>
</p><p><em>The last thirty seconds of the exchange are filmed from a different angle and uploaded on Instagram. </em>Disgusting<em>, the caption reads. </em>I hate it when people are in love.</p><p>
  <em>It has two thousand likes within the first hour.</em>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>First time writing for a different fandom, ever!  </p><p>Disclaimer: I have no idea how instagram works now or for the forseeable future</p></blockquote></div></div>
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